Samian bowl

Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Archaeology Collection

The bowl was found by Stephen Fox, one of the workmen employed to dig a trench across the Green for new water pipes. It dates from the 2nd century AD and has survived undamaged. The bowl is 9 inches in diameter and 5 inches deep, and is decorated with raised figures of animals (including oxen, deer and rabbits) and dancing women.

Samian was a fine tableware, and is sometimes called Arretine Ware or Terra sigillata. It is thought that this type of pottery was first made on the island of Samos in the Mediterranean. Production was later concentrated in large pottery works in ancient Gaul (modern-day France). Most Samian Ware found in Britain was imported from Gaul, although it was made in a few factories in England during the 2nd century AD.

Reference: 1877.1

Reproduced with the permission of Glasgow City Council, Glasgow Museums